A switching regulator may be configured to provide an output voltage (VOUT) in response to an input voltage (VIN). Typically, a switching regulator includes an inductor that is coupled to a switch. In operation, the inductor current is a triangle wave current based on the opening and closing of the switch, and an output capacitor provides VOUT from the inductor current. Also, the switch is controlled by a control signal, where the duty cycle or the frequency of the control signal is typically modulated based on negative feedback.
A buck regulator may be used to generate a regulated output voltage that is less than the input voltage; conversely, a boost converter may be used to generate a regulated output voltage that is greater than the input voltage. However, DC-DC converters with step up/step down characteristics need to be used when the input and output voltage ranges overlap. For example, a DC-DC converter may be used to convert a voltage from a battery, which may have a voltage from 4.5V to 2.5V, into an output voltage of 3.4 V to 0.8 V.